THERE is a philosophy that is gaining increasing acceptance among us, which is dangerously subtle. It is the idea of doing good with no strings attached and no hooks involved. In an important sense the concept of being a do-gooder with no thought of reward is right and admirable. For nothing is more detestable than the selfishly motivated individual who pats or slaps the backs of those who can return the favor and more besides. The church is bulging with I-invited-you-to-dinner-nowit's-your-turn-to-invite-me-to-dinner people. These consider the words of Jesus, "Do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again" (Luke 6:35), as only pretty prose.
The Great Statistic Swindle
And, of course, another danger is the great statistic swindle. This is observed when a person is motivated to good acts not for the salvation of a soul, but for the getting of a goal. To such individuals the number of pieces of clothing and baskets of food distributed constitutes the heart of the gospel. The let's-set-a-new-record-this-year slogan is nailed to the pulpit. Christ and His salvation stand outside while the church struggles and strives to beat last year's records. Faster and faster goes the merry-go-round of numbers under the stream of soaring statistics until a clear, loud voice declaring, "I never knew you, depart from me," grinds it to a halt.
Snub-the-Sinner's-Soul Club
It is probably such false motivations that are responsible for the equally damaging and dangerous extreme to which I have referred—the serving of our neighbor without evangelistic hooks or strings. We see a growing number who are perverting Christ's true principle of service, knowingly or unknowingly, as it relates to soul-winning endeavors. The gospel commission is being remodeled to read "Go ye therefore and do good to all people, but never entertain the thought of baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost."
In other words, let's keep a strict separation between soul winning and good deeds. Let's not be so unethical as to try to keep a man from going to hell while visiting him in prison or trying to clothe his poor, naked body. The result of this philosophy is the formation of a Snub-the-Sinner's-Soul Club.
Hooks and Neighbors
To be specific, consider the infidel who is my next-door neighbor. From time to time we greet each other. After a while a friendship is formed. As a Christian and Seventh-day Adventist, I have a responsibility to let him know—some way, somehow—about our glorious truth. How to approach him is the big question. Is it possible for me, with a love in my heart for souls and for my Redeemer, to relate myself to this neighbor in a hookless or no-strings-attached way? Is it possible for me with my understanding of the gospel to just be a good neighbor—good in the sense that I am friendly and deal honestly with him, but never attempt to share my faith? I claim this is not only an impossible attitude for a dedicated Christian but an unthinkable one! It is like taking your neighbor out to dinner while his house is burning down.
Crammed but Concealed
A true Christian's life is crammed with hooks! True, they are concealed, but sooner or later they are revealed. Whether it be in the gift of a loaf of bread or an invitation to a home social, I always have in the back of my mind my neighbor's salvation. I constantly seek ways and means of "hooking" him for Heaven! If God died for my neighbor the very least I can do is to let my neighbor know about it in the most gracious manner possible. Is it necessary to state that no true Christian would ever refuse help to one in need even though that one may never respond to Christ? Is it necessary to state that no true Christian would ever refuse help to one in need even though that one may continue to turn a deaf ear to public or personal witnessing?
Christ and Hooks
Our Lord promised to make fishers of men of those who followed Him. He commanded us to be "wise as serpents and harmless as doves." This philosophy of just being a good neighbor renders us harmless as doves, but overlooks the wise-as-serpents part. The church truly is quite harmless today because of this no-hooks philosophy.
The serpent's wisdom in Eden plunged the world into sin and death. The wise-asserpents plan is to use every possible means to save a sinner. Even though some scholars say that the words of 2 Corinthians 12:16 are the accusing words of Paul's enemies, I find that Ellen White used them as Paul's words. "I caught you with guile."
Paul is a fantastic example of "hooking" everyone possible for the kingdom.Whether he stood before kings or the devil-possessed, he saw everyone as a possible convert. He was on a witnessing spree from daylight to dark every day of his Christian life! He could never separate doing good to his neighbor from trying to save him for eternity.
Hooks of the Apostles
One could easily relabel the New Testament book "The Acts of the Apostles" as "The Hooks of the Apostles." It is a thrilling story to read, especially while sitting in a soft, easy chair. Had we lived during those days, perhaps we would have thought differently. The entire story deals with riots, stonings, shipwrecks, beatings, beheadings, but the inevitable result was baptisms! One thing certain, the apostles were not involved in running friendship clinics per se, or Five-Day Plans per se, or welfare centers per se, or Ingathering programs per se, or hospitals and sanitariums per se—these men had a dynamic message loaded with hooks. Every act they performed was purposeful. Every trip they took had a definite plan. Every sermon they preached had strings attached! Every contact they made—for business, pleasure, or otherwise—they skillfully tried to use, then or later, as an avenue for witnessing.
The greatest cruelty possible is to omit the supreme act of kindness—the introducing of a lost man to the Saviour. All other acts of kindness are merely bridges to this supreme act. To do otherwise is only to build dead-end streets. You can feed and clothe a person, but "greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." The man with gospel hooks in his daily program has already laid his life on the altar of sacrifice!
